title: Blood lead levels during pregnancy and its influencing factors in Nanjing, China.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the blood lead levels (BLLs) in the duration of pregnancy and 6-12 weeks after delivery, and analyze the influencing factors of BLLs in healthy pregnant women.
  
  
  METHODS
  Pregnant women were recruited from September 2009 to February 2010 at the prenatal clinic in Nanjing Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital. Altogether 174 healthy pregnant women without pregnant or obstetric complications or abnormal pregnancy outcomes were enrolled as the gravida group, and 120 healthy non-pregnant women as the control group. BLLs during pregnancy were determined by flame atomic absorption spectroscopy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  BLLs in all the three pregnancy trimesters and postpartum were 59.8±24.3, 55.4±20.1, 55.9±19.7, and 67.6±17.4 μg/L, respectively, and the mean BLL in control group was 67.5±21.3 μg/L. BLLs during all the three trimesters were lower in the gravida group than in the control group (P=0.043, 0.021, and 0.028). Furthermore, occupations, nutrients supplementation, and time of house/apartment painted were associated with BLLs in pregnant women. Lead-related occupations, cosmetics use, and living in a house painted less than 1 year before are risk factors of high BLLs among pregnant women, while calcium, iron, zinc, and milk supplements are protective factors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Supplementing calcium, iron, zinc, and milk, or avoiding contact with risk factors may help people, especially pregnant women, to reduce lead exposure.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine, Department of Clinical Laboratory, Nanjing Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, China.
authors.forename: Kang-sheng
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Jia-hu
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Hao
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: Chun-fang
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.forename: Xi-rong
authors.initials: XR
authors.lastname: Guo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007854:Lead / Q000097:blood*; D011247:Pregnancy / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D007854:Lead